Cops just in time to foil robbery and more of female student

The police say they are clamping down on the re-emergence of a criminal scheme which young criminals are using to target students from some schools across the country.

The scheme involves the youngsters dressing up in school uniforms and lurking in busy areas around and at the front of educational institutions, all with the intention to attack and rob unsuspecting students.

The cops say disguising as students in school uniforms is also being used by criminals to elude the police.

“The criminals realise that when they dress in the uniforms, they can easily gain the trust of students who are many times not aware that they (the criminals in uniform) are not one of them,” said a senior police officer.

“The method is also used to elude the police when they (the disguised criminals) commit crimes. It is easier for them to escape from authorities by running into a crowd that includes students wearing the same uniform,” the police officer explained to Loop News.

Evidence of the scheme was cited on Thursday, after a youngster posing as a student, lured a female pupil to a spot near a prominent Corporate Area school, where he attacked her and stole her phone.

But while in the process of doing more, he was spotted by members of a police team.

The youngster was chased and held by the cops, and was also captured on video by onlookers, as shown, being sent off to jail.

The police have since issued a warning for students to be vigilant when travelling on the roads, and to avoid loitering after regular school hours.